BHB: March 2003 Archives

Archives

Beacon Hill Beat By Curt Lovelace

March 2003 Editions. Compiled from staff reports, wire services, and the State House News Service.

While the Governor who was elected to handle the state budget crisis works to do just that, new groups join the ranks of the disgruntled every day. Executives from dozens of hospitals gathered in Nurses Hall Thursday morning to warn that Gov. Mitt Romney's budget will leave 80 percent of hospitals in the red, up from the present 50 percent, and reduce the quality of care provided at all hospitals. Hospital officials say Medicaid reimburses them 71 cents for every dollar of care provided. They say their fiscal picture will be darkened further with more than $500 million in new cost burdens passed on under Romney's budget, which is being reviewed by legislators.

The rally comes as Romney prepares to meet with hospital executives next week. Business and labor leaders, meanwhile, are releasing a report claiming more employees will soon be asked to pay more for health insurance.

Unresolved property transaction and insurance issues at the $14.6 billion Big Dig project are holding up federal approval of the project's finance plan, submitted last fall, and causing "serious financial consequences" for the state, according to Treasurer Timothy Cahill. In a letter to federal highway officials released on Thursday, Cahill says the state has advanced $100 million to the project to cover costs and prevent delays while federal funds are tied up due to the ongoing review of the project's finance plan. The problem, Cahill said, is the temporary state aid to the project adding to the state's already stressed cash flow and the Treasury is due to make a large local aid payment on March 31. In his letter, Cahill urged Federal Highway Administration division administrator Stanley Gee to "make every effort possible to help resolve the issues that are delaying the finance plan approval." Cahill circulated his letter to members of the state's Congressional delegation and leading state officials.

After a St. Patrick's Day breather, the Senate returns next Tuesday for an informal session and a members-and-staff-only briefing on health care. The Senate on Thursday sent Gov. Romney a bill affecting Dracut and announced a seminar on the state ethics law will be held next Tuesday.

The House recessed late Thursday morning, anticipating that a bill to help replenish emptied accounts for snow and ice removal would surface from its ways and means committee. The House, however, adjourned Thursday afternoon without acting on the supplemental budget. Another informal session is scheduled for Tuesday. Before adjourning, the House did advance a bill allowing Oak Bluffs to withdraw from the Martha's Vineyard Commission.

Thursday March 13, 2003
Finneran Continues Democrat Attack on Romney Budget, Truthfulness

Saying "we have to speak the truth at all times," House Speaker Thomas Finneran Wednesday criticized Gov. Mitt Romney for offering "sweeping public statements" followed by a "somewhat muffled retreat" when his assertions are challenged. Finneran specifically referred to Romney's claim that his administration had discovered $2 billion in waste and inefficiency during his televised 'State of the State' address.

Speaking before the Greater Boston Chamber of Commerce, Finneran also called the lack of details to support the administration's budget proposal "frustrating."

The Speaker reiterated that there is no appetite among lawmakers to consider more taxes to balance next year's budget, but said as the Legislature grapples with a $3 billion deficit no proposal will be dismissed without consideration. Looking long term, Finneran called for a Constitutional Amendment to ensure a minimum annual contribution to the state's reserves and to limit the amount that could be withdrawn from the account each year. He said the mistakes of the last two years were the failure to cut spending sooner and the near depletion of the $2 billion in the state's 'rainy day' fund.

There's a new effort afoot to save the state's groundbreaking prescription drug insurance program, and the Romney administration and legislative leaders are engaged in behind-the-scenes talks to avoid a full-blown crisis in health care financing. The negotiations could spare 50,000 people from losing state health benefits April 1. Administration officials announced the developments at a hearing on state health and human services spending, which is approaching 50 percent of overall state spending, at Algonquin Regional High School in Northborough.

At the hearing, Senate budget chief Therese Murray (D-Plymouth) said Gov. Mitt Romney's $22.9 billion budget bill "clearly isn't" balanced and cautioned the Legislature will have to make deep spending cuts. In general, cuts are being targeted at prevention programs, though treatment and direct services are being cut as well.

Secretary of Health and Human Services Ronald Preston acknowledged the governor's budget isn't perfect, but cautioned lawmakers that the $3 billion budget gap facing Beacon Hill decision makers will worsen soon without major changes in the way the state coordinates 26,000 human services employees and delivers more than $10 billion in services.

Worried that crimes against children remain underreported, Attorney General Thomas Reilly on Wednesday urged lawmakers to up the penalties for failing to report them. He testified before the Criminal Justice Committee in support of a bill to increase the fine from $1,000 to $25,000 and allow judges to impose jail time of up to 30 months. It was one of several bills the committee considered during its first hearing of the 2003/04 session and members appeared eager to endorse the legislation amid continued headlines about abuse cases involving the Catholic Church.

Anticipating a steep cut in state support for higher education, the University of Massachusetts board of trustees on Wednesday hiked annual student fees by $1,000, raising $40 million for the school year beginning this fall. The Office of the President of UMass is under scrutiny for major budget cuts.

Gov. Mitt Romney's proposal to revamp the state's public higher education system lacks planning, undermines the present system, and is "focused solely on the bottom line," a member of House Speaker Thomas Finneran's leadership team wrote in a three-page letter released early Tuesday night. "The details are vague and much of the substance has yet to be produced, but there is no doubt that educational quality and accessibility will suffer if this plan is implemented," wrote House Ways and Means Committee vice-chairman Rep. Peter Larkin (D-Pittsfield). Larkin said the last higher education revamp, engineered in part by former Gov. William Weld, has made the University of Massachusetts a "success story." Romney has proposed shutting down the University of Massachusetts' president's office, decentralizing the higher education system, merging many administrative functions and vesting regional councils with more decision-making powers.

Feeling the public sentiment against new or higher taxes, legislators are focused now on tax enforcement. Two rounds of tax amnesty, whereby delinquents pay overdue taxes but are spared interest costs, have produced $163 million, double the initial estimates. Gov. Mitt Romney and the Legislature just agreed to close a handful of corporate tax loopholes, a move that Beacon Hill leaders say will generate at least $150 million. "That's a good start," said committee member Sen. Stanley Rosenberg (D-Amherst). "But we ain't done."

Romney and the Legislature have also agreed to join other states exploring a streamlined national sales tax collection process. Sen. Richard Moore (D-Uxbridge) says a streamlined system, if approved nationally, could in two years net Massachusetts $600 million in sales tax revenues that are currently not being paid on Internet transactions. Lawmakers who have cut staff at the Department of Revenue (DOR) are now considering restoring auditors and tax collection workers.

Any vehicle used to transport more than 10 students would be required to meet federal safety guidelines for a school bus under legislation proposed by the Registry of Motor Vehicles. State laws do not presently require mini-vans or other vehicles used by school districts for special transportation needs to comply with the federal guidelines for transporting more than 10 children. Federal regulations say the vehicles must be equipped with safety equipment consistent with a traditional school bus, including mandatory flashing safety lights, an emergency exit, and a retractable stop sign alongside the driver's window to alert traffic when students are entering or exiting the vehicle.

State law for vehicles transporting less than 10 students requires seatbelts for every passenger and limits the number of students to the vehicle's capacity, whether it is a car, van, mini-van, or any other vehicle. That statute will remain unchanged, according to Registry of Motor Vehicles General Counsel Erin Deveney. Deveney said the proposed law would take effect January 1, 2005, providing school systems time to meet the requirements. She said the regulations would not apply solely to transportation to and from school, but to after-school activities or weekend field trips as well. Deveney said the legislation is for safety purposes, and that the state has not been losing federal money as a result of the loophole. The bill was heard by the Public Safety Committee on Tuesday morning.

Fourteen counties are eligible for federal funds to help cover the cost of clearing the roads of snow and ice during and after the President's Day Blizzard. The aid was authorized under an emergency declaration issued by President George Bush. The Federal Emergency Management Agency will cover 75 percent of eligible costs incurred over a 48-hour period. A decision is expected shortly on Gov. Mitt Romney's request for assistance for an additional 24-hour period. State officials will soon announce the locations of workshops where local officials will be walked through the process of getting federal aid.

Gov. Mitt Romney's budget once again came under fire Monday from Democratic legislators who say the state's new chief executive has not produced the important details that spell out his restructuring rhetoric. Testifying for more than two hours before House and Senate Ways and Means committee members at Bridgewater State College, Education Secretary Peter Nessen and Higher Education Chancellor Judith Gill said Romney's proposed shakeup of public higher education will decentralize decision-making, slow down soaring fee increases and align curricula with the needs of regional businesses and job providers. But Romney's plan didn't win any praise from lawmakers Monday morning. Instead, legislators were full of fact-finding inquiries and said they would have even more questions if more details were available. Romney administration and finance aides on Friday told lawmakers additional details concerning his budget proposals were forthcoming.

With Ways and Means Committee members in both branches holding budget hearings all week, the Legislature itself is quiet. Both branches held brief informal sessions Monday and agreed to return next on Thursday for additional informal sessions. The lull won't last long, however. Joint committees are just beginning to schedule and hold hearings on thousands of bills filed for consideration in the 2003-2004 legislative session.

The state's housing crunch cannot be solved with public funding alone, according to a new report, which says the primary role of state and local government should be to lay a foundation and then allow developers, community development corporations, and others to build homes. The report co-authored by Charles Euchner of Harvard's Kennedy School of Government and the Pioneer Institute, a think tank that advocates free market policies, says much of the drag on housing production results from strict state and local regulations. At times, the system seems to conspire against the construction and rehabilitation of housing, the report says. The authors propose overhauling codes that govern wetlands protection, zoning, handicap access and septic systems. Massachusetts - and, in particular, Greater Boston - must "clear away some of the regulatory underbrush" to encourage the development of new housing, the report says. On Wednesday, the Legislature's Housing and Urban Development Committee plans to hear testimony from Romney administration officials on a range of housing issues. No bills are before the committee.

In his attempt to right the financial ship of state, Gov. Mitt Romney may cancel plans to build new headquarters for the state Department of Public Health's in Roxbury, a $60 million project hailed by Boston Mayor Thomas Menino as a model of urban revitalization. Menino said Friday he was sending a letter to Romney to make sure the project is not jettisoned. The state made a commitment to build the new headquarters in Roxbury's Dudley Square, a project Menino said would bring 2,000 workers and wave of activity to one of the city's poorer neighborhoods. "There was a commitment made by state government," Menino said. "The community needs the services, but it's also an efficient way of delivering those services."

Romney's Administration and Finance Secretary, Eric Kriss, said that although no firm decision has been made, the governor may abandon the 185,000 square-foot project because it doesn't fit in with his plan to reorganize state health and human services agencies. Romney is seeking to make the agencies more efficient.

New Insurance Committee co-chairman Sen. Guy Glodis (D-Worcester) wants to repeal the new $1.30 tax on prescriptions that the Legislature and Gov. Jane Swift agreed to last year to generate $72 million for the Medicaid program, including $36 million from the federal government. Under pressure from legislators and Attorney General Thomas Reilly, major pharmacies that originally passed the tax on to people filling prescriptions recently agreed to absorb the levy but Glodis is not sure how long that will last. Smaller pharmacies have not all agreed to absorb the tax, which some call a user fee. Glodis says smaller pharmacies may not be able to absorb the tax, which he says would force them to either shut down or pass the cost on the prescription drug buyers.

The Insurance Committee will hold an oversight hearing on the issue Tuesday. "I want to open this debate up," says Glodis.

Attorney General Thomas Reilly announced Friday that his office is reviewing the proposed rate increase for businesses workers compensation insurance. Reilly said in a statement that the insurance industry's request to raise the rates by 10.8 percent "may be excessive." If the increase were approved, it would be the largest hike in more than 10 years. The last time the rates changed, in 2001, the Division of Insurance approved a 1 percent increase. Workers compensation insurance covers companies for employees who suffer work related injuries.

Massachusetts companies spend close to $1 billion a year on workers compensation insurance. Industry officials say the fallout from Sept. 11, the economic decline and rising medical inflation are all contributing to the need for a rate increase. According to the insurers' filing, 49 deaths and more than $30 million in losses were tied to Massachusetts workers killed or injured by terrorists. Reilly's statement said an initial review of the request indicates that insurers have asked for too much profit and have over calculated some of their expenses. In addition, employee workers compensation claims dropped nearly 40 percent between 1996 and 2001. Reilly's office will file a rate recommendation within the next two months.

The House budget chief said Monday he intends to explore Gov. Mitt Romney's
proposal to wipe out the president's office at the University of Massachusetts to save $14 million. "We're looking at how much we would save if that would happen, whether or not we should go there, whether or not it's good policy," said House Ways and Means Committee Chairman Rep. John Rogers (D-Norwood). "But clearly just because someone says we shouldn't do it is not an argument enough to discard a proposal." Romney says others can do the chief functions of the president's office, allocating public funds and conducting fundraising, in a revamped higher education system that takes a more regional approach. The university president is former Senate President William Bulger.

Faced with another huge budget problem, House Speaker Thomas Finneran is sending lawmakers out on assignment for the second straight year. Finneran Thursday announced the formation of eight task forces designed to open the budget process to the public and gather input from citizens about how the state should spend its money. The task forces will meet around the state through March, and their findings will be reported during caucuses later this month and in early April. The House budget debate is scheduled to run for two weeks, beginning on May 5, Finneran also announced.

The task forces leaders are as follows: Health and Human Services, Rep. Antonio Cabral (D-New Bedford); Medicaid, Rep. Daniel Keenan (D-Southwick); Local, State and Federal Revenues, Rep. Paul Casey (D-Winchester); Local Government, Rep. Patricia Walrath (D-Stow); Economy and Workforce Development, Rep. Michael Rodrigues (D-Westport); Education Financing, Rep. Peter Larkin (D-Pittsfield); Courts, Rep. Eugene O'Flaherty (D-Chelsea), and Credit Rating, Rep. James Fagan (D-Taunton).

Unions Accuse Romney of Eliminating Health Insurance for State Employees

Union leaders and House Democrats angrily accused Gov. Mitt Romney of eliminating family health insurance coverage for state employees in his budget proposal for next year. Romney administration officials said they believed coverage had not been eliminated, but left open the possibility that an "error" had been made. Romney spokeswoman Shawn Feddeman said if a mistake had been made, the governor would seek to fix it with House and Senate leaders before the budget becomes law. "If we made an error, we will certainly correct it," Feddeman said. "The governor wants to extend family coverage for all state employees." But those statements proved little consolation to irate leaders of the Massachusetts AFL-CIO, who held a placard-toting press conference to say the proposal would end coverage for 75,000 spouses and children of state workers. "This quite frankly is the most anti-family health insurance proposal any of us at the AFL-CIO has ever seen," union president Robert Haynes said. Rep. Martin Walsh (D-Boston) accused Romney of an "assault on the working class people of the Commonwealth."

House Speaker Thomas Finneran said on Wednesday that there will be a noontime caucus today in Room A-1 for all members, Democrats and Republicans. The purpose of the caucus is to address the establishment and composition of budget task forces and working groups as the House begins the task of assembling its own budget document.

It's not as though there hasn't been plenty of criticism for Big Dig officials in the past several years. Now their email policies are under attack. They were faulted Tuesday for deleting thousands of potentially important emails every 30 days. The State Records Conservation Board told Big Dig officials to clean up their policies to ensure emails about critical topics such as cost overruns and construction schedules are not scrapped.

The reprimand came after a Big Dig attorney, Albert Caldarelli, told the board, which is probing the project's records-keeping, that the Big Dig regularly deletes emails every month, regardless of their content. "We consider email to be an informal means of communication on the project," Caldarelli said. "The policy on the project is to regularly delete them within 30 days." Big Dig officials are told to write formal communications down on paper, he said.

The Big Dig's email policy appears to fall short of state guidelines adopted last month. The state recommends that "any substantive email information" from government agencies, including the Massachusetts Turnpike Authority, which oversees the Big Dig, be transferred to an outside file for safe keeping.

Members of the House and Senate budget-writing committees launch joint hearings on the fiscal 2004 state budget Friday at the State House. Officials from the executive branch agencies and the judiciary will testify at a series of hearings to explain their budget requests and talk about the status of services within their purview. Friday's first hearing of the House and Senate Ways and Means committees sitting jointly will feature testimony from Eric Kriss, Gov.Mitt Romney's secretary of administration and finance and the chief architect of the $22.89 billion budget now being analyzed. Also fielding questions will be representatives from the offices of Secretary of State William Galvin, Treasurer Timothy Cahill, Attorney General Thomas Reilly, Auditor Joseph DeNucci and Supreme Judicial Court Chief Justice Margaret Marshall. The hearings can lead to valuable insights on spending priorities, but also serve as an arena for Democrats in the Legislature to comment on Romney's budget proposal.

Senators and their staffs Tuesday listened to economic experts and Beacon Hill veterans of the last fiscal crisis who disputed the savings Gov. Mitt Romney has projected from government reforms and called for more tax hikes and short term borrowing as part of a solution to close the current deficit. "The Governor thinks he gets it, and maybe sometimes he thinks he knows it all, but his numbers don't add up," said former Senate Ways and Means Chairwoman Patricia McGovern. "He's going to be shocked when he sees what some of these cuts and so-called reforms mean, because he hasn't thought it through."

McGovern was critical of Romney, particularly his attempt to restructure the state's higher education make-up. She said it makes prospective students uncertain whether their schools will be in business a year from now. She said the Romney proposal weakens a system with proven success.

She was one of three members of the panel to specifically call for new taxes. Senators and Representatives remain leery of tax hikes given the strong support the initiative to end the state income tax received and the fact that the Legislature raised taxes by more than $1 billion last year.

The briefing, part of a series of sessions scheduled by Senate President Robert Travaglini (D-East Boston), featured presentations by McGovern, former Ways and Means staffers Kenneth Wissman, David Mackenzie, and John Malpiede, Massachusetts Taxpayers Foundation President Michael Widmer, and former Director of the Massachusetts Budget and Policy Center James St. George.

Courts Described as 'Dysfunctional, Unaccountable, Poorly Managed'

The Massachusetts court system took another hit Tuesday when a special blue-ribbon committee described it as dysfunctional, unaccountable, poorly managed and mired in confusion. In a report filed with Supreme Judicial Court Chief Justice Margaret Marshall, the Visiting Committee on Management in the Courts challenged the Judicial, Legislative and Executive branches to work together toward improving the third branch of government.

"Morale is near the breaking point, and there is little concern for customer service," according to the report. "Employees cry out for leadership. The public wants reasonably priced, quick, and courteous justice, but often receives just the opposite."

Chief Justice Marshall appointed the eight-member Visiting Committee on Management in the Courts last summer. Since then the members, led by former Boston College president Rev. J. Donald Monan, and their staffers have visited more than a dozen courthouses and interviewed 165 people. including judges and other court employees, lawyers and community leaders. Marshall said the 52-page report "reaffirms what many have long recognized: there are countless committed, talented and hardworking individuals in the courts across the Commonwealth who are eager to embrace change."

The other seven members of the Monan committee are former Senate Ways and Means chairman Patricia McGovern, now of Beth Israel Deaconness Medical Center; William C. Van Faasan of Blue Cross and Blue Shield of Massachusetts; Pilgrim Health Care chief Charles Baker; former Suffolk County District Attorney Ralph Martin; US District Court Judge David Mazzone; Northeastern University Professor Wesley W. Marple, Jr.; and Dorothy Terrell of NMS Communications.

A day after the House budget chief warned of a potential $1 billion local aid cut in the fiscal year ahead, Gov. Mitt Romney urged mayors to help him push for government reforms and restructuring proposals that could limit the cut to $232 million. "If we stand together, we can do our very best to keep that reduction from having to be as large as the Legislature has suggested," Romney said after meeting for the fifth time in eight weeks with the state's mayors, many who did not support him during last year's election. "I know that the mayors have a tough job to do. And I hope that we can do the very best together to deliver the essential services that cities and towns provide to our citizens."

Legislative leaders have questioned the true value of proposals that Romney says wipe out $2 billion in waste and inefficiency in state government. Romney says his savings are real and is pushing mayors to back his plans to consolidate agencies, close tax loopholes, boost fees and enact other reforms he says will produce major savings.

House Democrats will caucus Wednesday to begin the process of crafting their own budget and to discuss a response to Gov. Mitt Romney's spending proposal. The caucus will be followed by a formal session at 1 p.m. At the caucus, House members will likely be briefed on a conference committee report on Joint Rules changes.

House Speaker Thomas Finneran's spokesman said the report would be filed on Monday. Finneran has been mildly critical of Romney's sweeping proposal. Other Democrats have been more outspoken. Finneran will be meeting with his leadership team prior to the mid-week caucus. Finneran said this week that the caucus would likely be followed by public hearings across the state to gather input on specific spending categories. He has said he intends to include all House members in the process, as he did last year, when he set up special budget subcommittees.

The special committee on elections hasn't met in more than a month, so the question of whether the Legislature will comply with a judge's order to hold a new election remains unresolved. The committee charged with investigating the matter, led by Majority Leader Salvatore DiMasi (D-Boston) and sitting Rep. Eugene O'Flaherty (D-Chelsea) and Rep. George Peterson (R-Grafton) has failed to make any recommendations. Peterson said he sent DiMasi a letter this week urging the committee to act, but said the only response from the Boston Democrat was an acknowledgement of receipt.

A Barnstable Superior Court Judge ordered a new election for Rep. Matthew Patrick's seat after his Republican opponent challenged the results, citing election-day irregularities. One polling station was shut down for more than 30 minutes, and questions were raised over absentee ballots that were cast by people no longer living in the district. The House responded by appointing a special committee to review who has jurisdiction and decide whether a new election is warranted. Incumbent Matthew Patrick (D-Falmouth), who has been representing the district though he did not take the oath of office, and Republican Larry Wheatley have been raising money and campaigning in the district. Patrick has until March 17 to appeal the judge's ruling, but has said he believes an appeal is unnecessary because the House has jurisdiction over the matter, and is not bound by the court ruling.

Activists and legislators Monday called on Gov. Mitt Romney to modify the English immersion law before it is implemented next fall. Proponents of bi-lingual education urged the Governor to make waivers available to students of all ages and eliminate the provision in the law permitting lawsuits against teachers who instruct students in their native tongue. "The majority of those who will be affected by the immersion program rejected it," said Boston City Councilor Felix Arroyo. "We are looking for an alternative to make it easier for children to make the transition." Arroyo said making the change to the immersion system would be expensive. The two legislators who attended the press conference, Rep. Elizabeth Malia (D-Boston), and Rep. Frank Smizik (D-Brookline), echoed that sentiment, but did not offer specifics.

Gov. Mitt Romney has been a strong supporter of English Immersion, but has indicated he opposes the new law's provision allowing lawsuits against teachers who use non-English instruction. But if Romney moves to eliminate that provision, he'll be opening a legislative Pandora's box; opponents of other parts of the law would be sure to propose their own adjustments.

Monday March 3, 2003
Insurance Underwriters Seek Rate Hike for Unemployment Compensation

The bureau that represents insurance underwriters in Massachusetts late Friday asked state regulators to raise workers compensation premiums by an average of 10.8 percent. Workers compensation rates in Massachusetts were cut significantly during the mid and late 1990s but have remained flat since 2000. The premiums are paid by businesses to insure workers against on-the-job injuries.

Division of Insurance regulators and the insurance industry have six months to agree on a rate adjustment. If a settlement is not reached, the state insurance commissioner may set the rate. Industry officials say the fallout from Sept. 11, the economic decline and rising medical inflation are all contributing to the need for a rate increase. According to the insurers' filing, 49 deaths and more than $30 million in losses were tied to Massachusetts workers killed or injured by terrorists.

Massachusetts will stick with its own program for regulating emissions from factories and utilities and reject a "relaxed" federal program that the state environmental affairs secretary says contains too many loopholes. "We've worked hard in Massachusetts to clean up our air - this is not the time to backslide," said Secretary Ellen Roy Herzfelder. Gov. Jane Swift last year announced state environmental officials would require large industrial polluters to install state-of-the-art control systems sooner than industry officials had anticipated. Gov. Mitt Romney has signaled he intends to continue along the path that Swift laid out.

The Legislature's Government Regulations Committee plans to hold an oversight hearing in March to explore the economic and environmental effects of the possible closure of a coal plant in Salem that is struggling to comply with the new standards. Massachusetts and nine other Northeast states have filed suit to stay the new federal rules, citing the potential for increased pollution flowing into the Northeast from polluters in the Midwest. "We are open to finding ways to streamline the permitting process and to provide flexibility and regulatory certainty for the business community, but this must be done in a way that protects our significant gains and improvements in air quality," Edward Kunce, acting commissioner of the state Department of Environmental Protection, said in a statement.

On Tuesday, the Supreme Judicial Court will hear opening arguments in a case brought by seven gay and lesbian couples who argue that equal protection under law guarantees them a "fundamental right" to marry. The suit -similar to a legal challenge that forced passage of the civil union law in Vermont - names the Department of Public Health as the defendant. The agency regulates marriage in Massachusetts. Attorney General Thomas Reilly, who is considered an advocate of gay rights, will be defending the state in the lawsuit. The case, originally filed in Suffolk Superior Court in April 2001 has attracted reams of friend-of-the-court briefs supporting the couples. Bar associations, Unitarian, Jewish, psychological and psychiatric associations have weighed in as backers.

Several groups opposed have also filed briefs. They include the National Association for Research and Therapy of Homosexuals, Jews Offering Alternatives to Homosexuality, and Catholic, Orthodox Jewish and Orthodox Greek leaders. Experts say that broadened marriage rights granted in one state, could force other states to change their own laws, if a couple relocates to a new state. Indeed, Utah, Nebraska, and South Dakota have all filed briefs. Only five Massachusetts lawmakers have recorded their opposition. They are Sen. Glodis and Reps. Travis, Connolly, Miceli, and Poirier.